Awakening The Echo
by Psychotic Arsonist
Summary: SEQUEL TO IMMORTAL ECHO [yayz!] 13 years later, Kasumi lives peacefully in the leaf village. But all that turns upside down when she finds out about her parents... rated T because of guess who? (hint: Hidan)
1. Prolouge

A woman dashed through the forest, breathing hard. Her silver hair blew about wildly as she ran, and her silver eyes wide in shock. She met a giant village, the leaf village, or known as Konoha. A pink haired woman came running out and stopped in front of of the other person.

"I'm so glad to see you-"

"No time for greetings, Sakura." The silver haired woman interrupted her. "You have been my closest friend, even when I joined the Akatsuki. I just need your help one more time." She looked down into her arms, revealing a small, breathing bundle. "Can... can you take care of her for me?" She looked up to Sakura, who momentarily stopped breathing.

"Tsume, is.. is she yours?" Sakura took the infant into her own arms.

"Yes. I can't take care of her, and you're the only one I trust. Just please!" Sakura looked at Tsume, worry and hope in her silver eyes.

"S... Sure. What is her name?"

"Kasumi. I have to go, they're following me." Tsume ran off, leaving Sakura with the infant.

"**Tsume! Wait!**" Sakura caught her breath, and looked down at the child. Kasumi opened her eyes, and Sakura gasped. They were lavender.

"Relax Kasumi, let's go to your new home..." And with that, Sakura walked back into the village.


	2. Discovery

Three shinobi strode into a dark, old building.

"Hey, Zane, this place is older than we thought! Look at all the dust!" One dirty blonde haired shinobi spoke, shining his flashlight around. There was a TV, couches, and a shitload of other stuff.

"Katsu, Ai, come over here. We can scrounge around here for stuff." A raven haired shinobi called to his teammates, and shined his flashlight down both hallways. "You guys can go down that way, I'm going this way." Zane trailed down the hallway, stopping at the first door. He opened it, and walked into a bedroom.

"Woah..." He trailed over to a desk, glancing at all the sculptures on it. "This guy must have been an artist, a very skilled one." He didn't notice the small clay bird hidden under the bed. Zane walked out, not noticing that the bird was quietly following him. "Hey, you two find anything?" Ai and Katsu ran back to where Zane was..

"Nope. Some of the doors were locked. How about you?" Katsu replied, Ai following quietly behind him.

"Only got through one room. You guys help out over here." Zane trailed off to the next room, Katsu in the one after that, and Ai in the the next one. A few minutes later, they each came out, nothing in their hands.

"This place is empty, nothing good in it. Wonder who lived here?" Ai spoke, walking into the next room to loot around. She froze once she pulled something out from under the bed. "Hey, guys. I think you need to come here and see this. Now." They rushed to her, only to freeze at what she was holding.

"It's an Akatsuki cloak. That means this place is the..." Katsu spoke,and their eyes widened in shock. "We need to get out, now!" They all turned around, only to meet five clay birds. "Shit. They must have planted them before they disappeared." All three of them ran out of the room, then outside just in time. The birds detonated and the whole hideout exploded. They all got hit by flying rubble, giving them cuts and bruises.

"Ho-ly shit. Thank our timing that we're still alive. We're lucky." Zane sat up, looking at the rubble that the hideout once was. "We need to do something about this, right guys?" Ai and Katsu groaned in pain. They caught the worst of the damage, as Ai had a large cut running down her leg and Katsu was hit in the head with a large chunk of stone.

"Yeah, after we all heal ourselves. Who shall we get?" Katsu rubbed the back of his head, only to see smudges of blood on his hand.

"I... I think we should get the leaf village's help." Ai quietly spoke, healing her leg with medical ninjutsu. "I mean, they were the ones who knew the most about the Akatsuki and got rid of them." Zane and Katsu nodded their heads in agreement.

* * *

"Madam Tsunade, we've received a message from the Tsuchikage of the rock village. It's important." A black haired woman strode into the large room, carrying a small pig.

"Alright Shizune, let's take a look." Shizune handed over the message to a blonde woman behind the desk.

_Hokage of the leaf, we have somehow found remains of the Akatsuki hideout. The leaf village's knowledge of the Akatsuki may help find secrets about them, and might even reveal if the Akatsuki still have a few secret surviving members. I would gladly like it if you sent a team of your shinobi to help investigate the remains._

_ -Tsuchikage of the rock_

Tsunade sat there for a bit, rereading the message a second time. She placed the message in a drawer and took out another piece of paper to reply back.

"Alright Shizune, find a squad that has not been sent on a mission yet. One that knows a bit about the Akatsuki. I suspect you know who I mean, don't you? Here." Tsunade handed over the reply she just wrote to Shizune, who nodded and scampered off.

* * *

"Alright, where is Mazu?" A black haired man spoke to two genin. They shrugged in reply, one saying 'I don't know.'. Just then, a red haired boy sprinted across the clearing, stopping in front of the man. "Where were you, Mazu?"

"I... I'm sorry Shikamaru-sensei, I forgot to take out the trash last night. I had to take it out this morning." Shikamaru sighed, then pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Just don't be late again." Mazu looked down in embarrasment and joined the other two genin.

"Why do you always have to be late? You are just wasting our time." The raven haired genin spoke rudely to Mazu.

"Its not like you haven't ever been late, Isamu." Mazu replied back in a harsh tone, and Isamu was about to speak again until Shikamaru spoke.

"Boys, be nice. It was an accident. It won't happen again, right Mazu?" The red haired boy nodded in response. Isamu just frowned and looked away. Suddenly, Shizune strode into the clearing.

"Shikamaru! I need to talk to you, it's important. Tsunade sent me." Shikamaru looked at her, then turned momentarily to the three genin.

"Alright. Kasumi, I want you to make sure these two behave, got it?" He looked at Mazu and Isamu, who just glanced at each other. The silver haired genin nodded in response. "Good." Shikamaru turned around to talk to Shizune, and almost immediately, the two boys started to bicker.

"Stop poking me!"

"I'm not poking you, see?"

"Yes you are! Stop!"

"No I'm not!"

"Will you two stop?! You, over there and you, over there, got it?" Kasumi pushed the two boys away from another, and stood in between them. '_Boys..._'

"Alright, looks like we've got a mission." Shikamaru turned back to the genin, who focused all their attention on him.

"What and where?" Isamu spoke, not even a slight bit of interest in his voice.

"We are going to help investigate the remains of an evil organization's hideout that has just been recently found. We will be traveling to the rock village, and they need us because we know the most about this organization. We will be leaving tomorrow morning." As soon as they were dismissed by Shikamaru, they scattered and dashed to their homes in excitement. Only Kasumi stayed back with him. He knew what this was about.

"Don't worry Kasumi, I know that we are going to be a long way from home, but I'll help you." Kasumi grinned and scampered off, leaving Shikamaru alone in the clearing. Something seemed to be bothering him. '_Is it just me, or does she look familiar?..._'


	3. Mission

**I am soo sorry for not posting in a long time. School and other stuff backed me up and well... don kill me!**

* * *

"Alright. We'll stop here and camp for the night, alright you three?" Mazu, Isamu, and Kasumi stopped and started to make camp, while Shikamaru gathered wood for a fire. As soon as the fire was lit, Isamu and Mazu conked out.

"Sheesh. How can they just do that- conk out almost immediately?" Kasumi sat by the fire, staring into it as if she was deep in thought.

"They're boys. They're always tired. Anyways, I need to talk to you about something." Shikamaru took a seat on the other side of the fire.

"What is it, Shikamaru-sensei?"

"I want you to promise me you will control yourself if we run into any trouble. Last time, you just barged into battle and lost control, almost going on a complete killing spree. Thankfully, they were there to help stop you." Shikamaru motioned towards the two boys, dead asleep. "Just, stay calm, alright?"

"Alright." Kasumi stood up and walked over next to a tree. She then sat down and fell asleep. Shikamaru sat awake, his mind full of questions. '_That look in her eyes, it... it wasn't her._'

**FLASHBACK**

"Hey! Shikamaru-sensei! We've got trouble!" _Isamu looked ahead at the three men in front of him. He scooted back, not knowing what to do._

"Just stay calm- **Wait! Kasumi!**" _Kasumi strode ahead, a kunai in her hand._

"Aww, she looks so brave, eh?" _One of the men spoke, laughing along with the other two. Suddenly, Kasumi lunged in and stabbed one of them. He fell to the ground, blood pouring from his stomach. She then thrust the kunai into his back, right about where his heart would be. The other two men were stunned, looking at their dead friend._

"Alright, who's next?" _Kasumi looked up, and Shikamaru froze in shock. Her lavender eyes were wild and bright, gleaming in excitement, while a wide grin was plastered across her face. Her silver hair was slightly stained in blood, but she didn't seem to care. The two remaining men ran away in fear as she lunged for them, but Mazu and Isamu held her back._

"Kasumi! Kasumi, stop! Calm down!" _She stopped struggling, and glared at the direction where the men ran._

"Wimps."

**END FLASHBACK**

Shikamaru shuddered at the memory, not wanting to experience that again. He stood up, put out the fire, then jumped up into a tree, which would be his temporary bed for tonight. '_It bugs me._ _She is a lot like someone I know, but I can't seem to place a finger on it._'

* * *

"Shikamaru-sensei! How much longer until we get there?" Mazu complained, like always, on long missions. Kasumi sighed, wondering why she was put in a team with him.

"Sent on a mission to come and get rid of me, huh?" A man stepped out of the trees and glared at the four of them. Around his head was a leaf village headband, but the symbol was crossed out. The man had short brown hair, which had leaves and a few stray twigs tangled in it.

"In fact, no. But we will do as much as we can to get rid of a missing nin like you, Koji." Shikamaru raised a kunai, knowing he could defeat Koji. "You three stay back, I got this." He didn't expect to see a silver blur go past him and lunge at Koji.

"Shikamaru-sensei! Kasumi-"

"Kasumi! What do you think you're doing?!" Shikamaru snagged Kasumi's arm and pulled her back.

"Trying to help! What do you think I'm doing?"

"No, I just told you to stay back! Now stay with Isamu and Mazu." Kasumi strode back to her teammates, frowning at the fact that she couldn't fight. She closed her eyes and imagined what she could have done to the missing nin, grinning at the many ways to kill him.

"Alright you three, let's go. He got away." The three genin followed him, continuing their mission. Kasumi stayed silent, not wanting to be yelled at by Shikamaru. He looked back at her and sighed.

"Look, I know you like to fight in battle, but you're still a genin. You would've gotten hurt."

"No I wouldn't have! I'm strong and I can fight, so there is no need to worry about me."

"But you don't have the skill of a jonin, so you would be dead if you fought one, like Koji."

"But... but I-" Kasumi caught herself, accepting that what Shikamaru said was true, and stayed silent throughout the rest of the walk.


	4. Upon Reaching Iwa

"When I said to send for leaf shinobi, I didn't expect three genin." Katsu spoke, while Zane grinned at the four leaf shinobi. Ai just sighed at both of them, as they weren't being polite, and walked up to the leaf shinobi.

"Hello, you must be the leaf shinobi we sent for. My name is Ai, the raven haired one is Zane, and the dirty blonde one is Katsu." Ai held out her hand to Shikamaru, who took it in greeting.

"Shikamaru Nara. These three are Kasumi, Mazu, and Isamu. We were sent to deal with your problem, in which you needed the knowledge of the leaf village."

"Yes. It deals with the remainders of the Akatsuki hideout we recently found." Shikamaru nodded in response.

"I have been informed of that. One of the Akatsuki killed my sensei."

"Oh... I can see why you, out of all the other shinobi, were sent. You all can stay at a nearby inn, and tomorrow we will find out what was in the remains of the hideout. Just follow me." Ai waved back at her two friends, Zane and Katsu, then started heading down a wide street, directing the leaf shinobi to a inn. They soon reached a building that seemed a bit worn down. "I know it doesn't look too great on the outside, but this inn is one of the best in this village. Meet me outside tomorrow, got it?"

"Right. Come on you three, the inn doesn't look that bad." Kasumi, Isamu, and Mazu reluctantly followed Shikamaru inside. They checked in and walked to their rooms. "Isamu and Mazu, we have the same room. Kasumi, you have your own room." Shikamaru pointed to a room across from theirs.

"Why does she get her own room?" Mazu whined, not wanting to sleep in the same room as Isamu.

"Because she is a girl, and no more arguing, alright?" The two boys frowned and nodded in agreement, then walked into their room. Kasumi just grinned happily and flopped down onto her bed, glad she was alone. She laughed when she overheard arguing between the boys about the sleeping arrangements, but it was soon resolved by them two sleeping on the floor and Shikamaru taking the bed. She closed her eyes and thought about her past. '_Life would only be better if I knew my parents._' She remembered the day when Sakura told her that there was no blood connection between the two of them, and that her parents are most likely dead now. She locked herself in her room for the rest of the day, shocked at what she had been told. '_But what do I know? Life could have been worse if I knew them._'

* * *

"Alright you three, hurry up and get ready. We're going to leave in a few minutes." Shikamaru sighed at the three genin, each of them half awake and yawning every few seconds. '_Even I was never this lazy. They would get killed first off if they were attacked by rouge shinobi in the morning._'

"Shikamaru-sensei, why did we come anyways? I mean, we don't know a thing about who or what the Akatsuki are. Only you older shinobi do." Isamu seemed wide awake now, unlike Mazu and Kasumi.

"I'll tell you all along the way, but first, can you help me wake these two up?" Isamu grinned, having the perfect idea.

"I'll need a bucket of water, only one. Either scalding hot or freezing cold." Isamu ran off somewhere for a few second, only to come back with a bucket and a ladder. He placed the ladder against the wall, then placed the bucket onto the top of the door. He scampered around the corner to hide, leaving Shikamaru to sigh and walk off. Only a few seconds later, Isamu heard footsteps, then the sound of water and a bucket falling.

"**Fuck!**" Isamu's smile disappeared when he heard the unlucky victim speak. '_Damn! It's Kasumi! I was hoping it to be Mazu!_'

"Hey Kasumi! I don't think it's a good idea to take a shower with your clothes on, ya know?" Mazu held back a laugh, in order to stay alive.

"Shut up, Mazu. I want to know where that little fucking twerp is, then tear off his fucking head and fucking place it in a fucking oven."

"Relax Kasumi. Isamu was trying to get Mazu, but you got caught in it instead. Just go dry off." Shikamaru calmed Kasumi down and handed her a towel. "Isamu, Mazu, I want you two to follow me outside, and you too, Kasumi, when you've dried off." The two boys obeyed and followed him out, thankfully not being killed by Kasumi.

"Shikamaru!" Ai waved at them, gaining their attention. Behind her were Zane and Katsu. "Where's Kasumi?"

"Well, she-"

"I'm right here." Kasumi walked out of the building, her hair still a bit damp. "The little black haired twerp decided to dump water on me." She glared at Isamu.

"Ah well, it's not the end of the world. Let's go." All seven of them walked together, but still seemed to stay in their separate groups at the same time.

"Shikamaru-sensei, who were the Akatsuki?" Mazu and Kasumi looked up at Shikamaru, just as curious as Isamu.

"Well, they were an evil organization that collected the tailed beasts to take control of all the villages. The group consisted of rouge shinobi from villages that had special talents. One of the members killed my sensei, but he is now most likely dead, if he was able to die."

"What do you mean?" Kasumi had no clue what Shikamaru meant by 'if he was able to die'.

"He was immortal, but he now lays mutilated, buried in an eight foot deep hole which is in my family's forest. Its been thirteen years since then, and I don't know if he's still alive."

"But why does the leaf village know the most about the Akatsuki?" Mazu spoke this time, and Shikamaru sighed.

"Because three of our shinobi were Akatsuki. Itachi Uchiha, Obito Uchiha, and Orochimaru were those three."

"Yes, and also our village contributed a ninja to the Akatsuki. Deidara joined when he was only fourteen. He destroyed some of our village before he left." Ai spoke, silence following after. Shikamaru thought about the death of his sensei, then stopped in shock.

"Shikamaru-sensei, are you alright?" Shikamaru nodded in reply to Isamu, than caught up with him. He looked over at Kasumi. '_That's why she looks so familiar. I should keep a close eye on her._


	5. Hideout Remains

"Alright, Isamu and Mazu, you two look over there, while Kasumi and I look over here." Shikamaru pointed over towards a large mound of rubble, which used to be part of the Akatsuki hideout. "Help me with this." Kasumi sighed and helped flip over a rock, which covered up a few things. "Catch." Kasumi almost fell back when Shikamaru tossed up something. It seemed to be a small ring, with a symbol on it.

"What is it?"

"It's an Akatsuki's ring, but it's not very important or useful anymore. You can keep it, since you're turning thirteen in another week or so." Kasumi smiled as he said this and immediately put on the ring. "Consider it as an early gift."

"Th... Thanks Shikamaru-sensei!" Kasumi looked around and saw that Ai, Zane, and Katsu were surrounded around something.

"Why don't you go see what they've found?" Shikamaru looked over and nodded towards Kasumi, who found her way to them around the rubble. Katsu froze when he noticed Kasumi, and brought her attention to Ai and Zane, who seemed shocked. Zane was holding a small recorder, which seemed to have just ended playing.

"Kasumi, I think you need to listen to this." Ai rewound the recorder and handed it over to Kasumi, who hesitated to hit play. "Just hit play." Kasumi was a tad afraid to, but she hit it anyways. The first thing she heard was someone singing.

**RECORDING**

"_Come little children, I'll take thee away, into our land of enchantment. Come little children, the time's come to play, here in my garden of shadows. Follow sweet children, I'll show thee the way, through all the pain and the sorrows. Weep not poor children, for life is this way-_" There was a creak, sounding like that of a door opening.

"It's alright, you can come in Hidan." The same person who was singing spoke. There was a bit of silence until another voice spoke.

"Konan is almost done with lunch, just for your information." A man spoke, seeming to be the one called Hidan.

"Smells good. What is it?"

"Let's just say that Kisame would be eating something else." The girl laughed.

"Ah, fish. Never really was his favorite?" This time, Hidan laughed.

"I have a question, and it's just a stray thought that went through my head not long ago. What would happen if we decided to have a child? Just a question, seriously."

"Well, if it would be a boy, what would you name him?"

"Why are you asking me? I have no clue. But how about if it was a girl? What's that?"

"What?" There was a bit of movement. "Well, if it would be a girl... um... I think she would be named Kasumi. Oh, I must have hit the recorder earlier. Give me a sec-" The recording ended, and there was static.

**END OF RECORDING**

Now everyone was surrounding Kasumi, who stood frozen. Her mind was zooming from one subject to another. '_Th... That can't be. Impossible! It's not true... someone else might be named Kasumi. Yeah, that's it. It's not me. I know so!_'

"Kasumi." Shikamaru placed a hand on her shoulder. "I know who was the woman in that recording. It was Tsume." Kasumi remembered the many times when Sakura mentioned Tsume, saying that they were close friends for a bit, until Tsume disappeared. She took a sharp breath when she suddenly remembered the time when she got hurt, and Sakura was worried about her. Sakura let slip something important, that Tsume was her mother. '_No. That means... both my mother and father were in the Akatsuki..._' Tears welled up in her eyes, not wanting to believe the truth.

"Kasumi! Wait! Come back!" The next thing everyone knew was that Kasumi sprinted off into the forest, alone. She kept on running as fast as she could, until the sun started setting. She stopped and looked at the sky, wondering if she should go back, or find a place to camp. She looked down at her left hand, the orange Akatsuki ring seeming to glow in the darkness. It had three lines on it, the symbol for 'San', or 'three'. She was pulled from her thoughts when a bird shot out of a tree. '_They're after me, so I've got to keep moving_'


	6. Awakening

Thanks to Loveable'Ninja for her OC Mizuke! She loves the stories and helped contribute to it, making it better!

* * *

A woman dashed through the forest, not stopping for any cause. Her black hair in the moonlight revealed blue streaks, almost the color of the night sky, but a tad brighter. All she knew was that she was sent out to dig up a man. '_Gross. Why am I supposed to dig up a dead body? Disgusting, but it seemed to be like an important job to father._' She lived alone with her father, and was sent on errands for money or food. Sometimes it was for rich people, but this job was just because her father sent her out to do something important for him. '_Wonder why he needs a dead body. Strange._' She didn't dwell on the subject and stopped for the night, climbing into a tree and falling asleep.

* * *

"Ow, damn mosquitoes!" The black haired woman scratched at her arm, as she was attacked by those annoying insects at night. She started walking in the direction of the leaf village, knowing where it was because she had been there to pick up food and supplies for her and her father before. She soon started picking up pace and was running, only to reach the border of the land of fire, or the leaf village's land, in a matter of minutes. Where she was going was a tad west of the village, but she decided to stop and say hi to a few friends. It was ten minutes until she reached the gates of the leaf village.

"Oi, Mizuke!" Sakura, a pink haired leaf ninja waved at the woman, gaining her attention.

"Hi Sakura! Nice to meet you again!" Mizuke smiled at her, and noticed that Sakura was carrying a bag. "What's in there?"

"Just a few items. How's your father?"

"He's doing fine. Where's Kasumi?"

"She's on a mission. Why are you here? Is it just for food and supplies?"

"No. Just an errand, got to go!" Mizuke started off to the west side of the land of fire.

"Bye!" She turned back to wave at Sakura, then sprinted to her destination. Where she was supposed to go was a forest that belongs to a family in the leaf village, called the Nara clan. Mizuke heard about the special jutsu that passed through the family, which allowed the user to take control of the shadows, trapping their enemies with their own shadow. Mizuke soon stopped at a small clearing, and in the center was a small, rocky mound with a bit of grass growing on it. '_This looks like the place._' She kicked a small stone from the edge of the mound, only to reach down and grasp a stone the size of her head, heaving it off to the side. '_This is going to take forever._'

* * *

"Shit." It was about midnight when Mizuke finished digging out the man, and she was surprised at the state he was in. "Just how in the hell..." The man was torn into pieces, but only a few, and he didn't seem to be decomposing one bit. Her father told her that he was down there for thirteen years, yet he didn't have any signs of being buried for that long. He looked like he was just recently put in the ground. The only thing that shocked Mizuke was that he. was. still. breathing. Thankfully, he was unconscious, or she would've screamed and fainted. "_Since he's still alive, I guess I should put him back together._'

Mizuke started to place the pieces of his body into position, then took out her medical kit which she always carried with her. Her father doesn't know, but she was taught to use medical ninjutsu with the help of Sakura. She first stitched his body together before she started healing, just to hold him together for the moment. She placed her hands on his right shoulder, where his arm was now stitched to and started to concentrate her energy into her hands. A green orb glowed around her hands and his arm started to attach to his shoulder. She then moved down to his legs then took a break. She needed to rest and regain her chakra, but she only had to reattach his head and that would be it. She pushed herself to finish healing the man, and almost collapsed in exhaustion when she was done.

"Damn, wonder why he was buried down there in the first place..." Mizuke soon drifted off to sleep, darkness over taking her vision.

* * *

'_Ow, damn it. Fuck._' Hidan felt pulses of pain run throughout his body, mainly giving him a headache. '_Wait. What?_' He slowly clenched the ground with his hands, then stretched out his fingers, to get rid of the soreness. '_The hell...?_' Slowly, he opened his eyes, only to shut them due to the bright sun. '_A fucking dream, it's a fucking dream, that's all._' But when he opened his eyes again, he met the bright light of day. It took him a second to get used to the light, as he was stuck in a hole for thirteen years. He moved his arm but winced when he did so. Taking in a sharp breath, he stood up, almost crumbling to the ground in pain, but he kept his balance against a tree. He slowly looked over and froze. On the ground, a few feet away from him, was a young woman, about seventeen, dead asleep. She twitched and slowly stood up, making Hidan hold his breath as not to bring notice to himself.

"Morning already? Ah well-" Mizuke turned around and froze, seeing that the man she dug up yesterday was awake and standing. She watched him as he tried to straighten up, but fall to the ground in pain. "Let me help you-" She walked forward to him.

"No! Don't fucking touch me, I can fucking handle it." He glared at Mizuke, not seeming to want help. Mizuke froze and backed a few steps away, taking notice of his violet eyes. He winced and leaned back, resting his head against a tree. Mizuke crept forward when he closed his eyes, and soon was sitting next to him. She jumped when he opened his eyes.

"I told you to not fucking touch me." He glared at Mizuke, not taking his eyes off of her when she inched her hands closer to his shoulder. She jerked back when he growled, but continued to inch closer until her hands were barely touching the stitches connecting his arm to his body. He seemed to relax a bit when she started to heal him, but he still kept his eyes on her. She moved her hands over to his back, allowing him to lean forward so she could help heal his joints.

"Who are you?" Mizuke paused to think when he asked this. '_I'm not sure if it's safe to tell him my name. I mean, I don't even know him._' She shook the thought from her head and continued healing him.

"Mizuke. How about you? And how did you get down there and still be alive?"

"Hidan, and I'd rather not say." Mizuke removed her hands from his back and stood up.

"You should move a bit better now. We should get going." Mizuke started to walk away.

"Wait, we? I'm not fucking coming with you."

"Well, I'm sorry to burst your bubble, but you have no choice. You're still weak and my father sent me to dig you up. And also we aren't supposed to be in here, as this forest is off limits to the people who own it." Hidan sighed and started to follow Mizuke.

* * *

"Shikamaru-sensei, will Kasumi come back?" Mazu looked into the forest, wondering about his teammate who ran off only two days ago.

"I don't know. I'll ask Tsunade if we will have to search for her. We are almost to the village, and I will tell you guys tomorrow." Shikamaru looked up, and off in the distance was the gates to the leaf village. When they became closer, he could see someone running towards them.

"Shikamaru! Wait!" It was Choji. "I have bad news!"

"What is it?" Isamu and Mazu stood wide eyed.

"It... It's about the forest that belongs to your family! There's an intruder!"


	7. Inn

"Gone. Hes gone. He couldn't have gotten out by himself... Someone must have helped him." Shikamaru looked around for anything that could help in searching. He, Choji, Isamu, and Mazu were standing in a forest with a giant hole in the middle of a clearing.

"Shikamaru-sensei! Would this work?" Isamu held up a small scrap of blue cloth. Shikamaru immediately took it.

"Thanks Isamu. We need to talk to Tsunade about forming a search party." They all quickly charged out of the forest, heading to the village.

* * *

"When are we fucking going to stop for fucking food?!" Hidan trudged along with Mizuke, the sun high in the sky. Mizuke sighed and stopped, then rummaged through her bag.

"Should have some food somewhere... oh!" Mizuke pulled out a headband. "I found this around the edge of the clearing. Is it yours?" She held it out to Hidan, who took it out of her hands. It had three slanted lines on it, but the symbol had a line gouged through the center of it.

"Fuck yeah. Reminds me that I need to find a few other things." He tied it around his neck, pleased that he had it. Mizuke went back to rummaging through her bag, only to stop in fustration.

"Damn. We might have to stop somewhere to eat. I don't seem to have any food with me." Hidan groaned, than trudged along with her in search of food and a place to stay, since they were tired of sleeping in trees or on the cold, hard ground. They soon exited the forest to a path.

"Come on. A path must lead somewhere." Mizuke led the way again, seeing a small light at the edge of the horizon. It wasn't long until they met a small town, a few people scattered here and there on the street, as the sun was now setting. The sun was completely down when they finally settled down in a room in the nearest inn.

"You need to take a shower. You're covered in dirt." Mizuke tossed a towel to Hidan, then pointed to the bathroom door. Later, when he came out, he was in the same pants as before, but now was clean. She now noticed that he had silver hair, not brown as before when it had dirt all in it.

"You take the couch." Mizuke pointed to a couch against the wall as she sat on the only bed. Hidan, obviously, was about to argue, but felt too tired to complain and flopped down onto the couch. Mizuke looked at him and thought. "You know, we will need to make a few trips around the place tomorrow."

"Why?" Hidan opened one eye to look at her.

"Well, we need food, and you need new clothes." Hidan looked down at his blue pants, which were torn here and there and shredded at the bottom. He didn't have any shoes, nor a shirt, obviously. He shrugged and flopped to his side, wanting to fall asleep.

"Goodnight then, I guess." Mizuke laid back onto the bed and took a deep breath, thinking about what happened during the last few days.

* * *

Kasumi was slowly making her way back to Konoha, now that her mind was clear... almost. '_My parents being part of an evil organization doesn't change me... yet it might be in my blood, being a criminal._' She couldn't make up her mind, but she was close to the borders of the land of fire. '_Hmm, a lot of trees, dead ones. This may be a petrified forest._' She glanced at the trees, all of them stiff in death. She soon found a mound of trees on the ground, broken into bits.

"Whoa." Kasumi looked at the damage. '_Who ever did this was strong..._' She glanced at the smashed boulder next to the mound that were once trees. She surveyed the area and her eyes stopped at something gleaming in the sun. When she neared the object, it started to look like a weapon, but old with vines on it. She tugged on it until it broke loose and brushed off the dirt and plant remains.

"Awesome!" Kasumi looked at the scythe, and swung it around. It was dull red and silver, and had three blades. "_Wonder who owned this thing..._" There was a rustle in a bush somewhere, and she swung around to look behind her. '_Something moved, and it might be shinobi sent out to find me._' She immediately sprinted away from Konoha, back the way she came from. She stopped only to take a breath and start a fire, but then it started to rain which ruined her mood. '_Ah, well. A tree would work for cover._' She looked around to find the driest spot around her, but it was wet everywhere. '_Shit._' Kasumi then started to trudge away to find a dry spot to sleep in for the night. '_This is harder than I thought..._' She kept walking until she met a cave stuck in the side of a hill. '_That should work._' She climbed inside, then tried to make herself comfy, and conked out cold.

**Time skip through the night...**

Someone was tapping Kasumi on the head, and was really trying to piss her off.

"Nrrg... go the fuck away..." Kasumi batted at where she was being poked at and turned over. The poking continued. "The fuck you want?!" She jerked up into a sitting position and looked around. There was a woman, a few years older than her, crouching next to her. The woman had black hair streaked with blue, and held a bag next to her.

"Oh, sorry. I just found you alone out here and wondered if you were alright. You hungry?" The woman pulled out an apple and handed it over. "My name is Mizuke."

"Kasumi." She took another bite of the apple, noticing how hungry she was. Mizuke helped her up when she was done, and Kasumi winced at the bright light from the sun.

"You know, you look like the man I'm traveling with." Kasumi shrugged. "His name is Hidan. Do you know him?" She froze at the name, remembering the recording from a few days back.

'_But... but sensei buried him... How could he get out?... unless she helped dig him out..._' Kasumi took a deep breath. "Yes, I do."

"Really? You two must be related to look that much alike." Kasumi winced. "I'm actually heading back to where we stayed for the night, so you can say hi and such." She felt her heart beat fast in nervousness. '_Would he know me as his daughter, or not? If he doesn't know about me, it would make it easier and I could either tell him about me, or just stay silent and not mention anything._' Kasumi noticed that they were approaching a town. '_Oh lovely..._' They soon were walking towards an inn, Kasumi lagging behind a bit due to the scythe on her back.

"You okay?" Mizuki looked at Kasumi, as she looked like she was about to faint.

"Fine." Mizuke shrugged and headed towards the door to the room they were staying in. Kasumi held her breath as Mizuke opened the door.


	8. Meeting

Sheesh! One cliffhanger an I get five reviews about it being evil and wanting me to continue it. Oh well... srry for the wait. School is busy and add judo to that plus being with my friends every other weekend... and next year will be worse. First year in high school... just lovely. -_-'

* * *

"Now where did he go?" Mizuke searched the room, but found no sign of the violet eyed man. Kasumi set down her stuff and took a seat, exhausted from the weight of the weapon she carried. "We should search the town."

"What?! We just got here!" Kasumi sighed and stood up, trudging behind Mizuke. She left behind the weapon, not wanting to carry it anymore. Mizuke was searching like a chicken with its head cut off, running here to there, not stopping.

"Kasumi, you look over there, and I will look over here." Kasumi sighed and strode off to the wide road, only glancing at every other person. She kept looking until her eyes stopped on a man leaning against a wall to a shop. He was glancing around every so often, but didn't take notice of her. He had blue pants that were torn and wasn't wearing a shirt. What made Kasumi freeze was that he had silver hair and distinctive violet eyes.

"Oh! There he is!" Kasumi jumped when she heard Mizuke come from behind her. She ran ahead to the man and dragged him back to where Kasumi stood.

"Uh…" Hidan glanced down at Kasumi, who felt nervous. She was a good four inches shorter than him, and you could cut the tension in the air with a pocket knife. '_Awkward…_'

"Who the hell are you?" Hidan frowned at Kasumi, who let go of the breath she was holding for nearly a minute.

"Her name is Kasumi, and she will be coming with us. No complaining, got it?" Mizuke pointed an accusing finger at Hidan, who sighed and rolled his eyes.

"How fun. Where to now?"

"We need to go back to the room and grab our stuff, then we can leave." Hidan turned to leave but his eyes caught a glimpse of the ring on Kasumi's finger.

"Where the fuck did you get that ring?" Kasumi looked down at the orange ring on her finger, then remembered what Shikamaru told her, and that it was an Akatsuki's ring.

"I found it on a mission with my team. Is it yours?" She pulled it off her finger and held it out to Hidan.

"Give it." Hidan snatched it off her hand and slipped the ring onto the first finger of his left hand. "Meh, once an Akatsuki, always an Akatsuki…" He mumbled to himself when they started to walk back to the room. "Hey, kid. How old are you?"

"Uh... twelve, but I'm turning thirteen in two days."

"And where are your parents?" Kasumi froze and took a deep breath, thinking of what to say.

"My mother and father left when I was young. I stayed with my mother's closest friend since I was little." Hidan sighed and looked out into the distance. They soon reached the door of the room, both Kasumi and Hidan staying silent. When Hidan stepped into the room, he immediately ran to the chair where Kasumi laid the weapon she found the day before.

"**Where in the fucking hell did you fucking find this?!**" Hidan picked up the scythe and looked at the damage it had collected over the years.

"I...I found it yesterday, close to the edge of Konoha in the petrified forest..." Kasumi felt uncomfortable at the moment, not knowing what to do.

"Hidan, I bought clothing for you, so you don't have to wear those torn pants." Mizuke broke the silence, and tossed Hidan a bag. He sighed and trudged into the restroom, only to come out with black pants and a red shirt on. (lol, akatsuki colors) "Alright then, I guess we can leave now."

* * *

"They went that way." A wolf-like man pointed in a general direction, his dog thoroughly sniffing the ground in the same direction.

"Thanks Kiba, and you too Akamaru. Sakura, Choji, lets go." Kiba led them, with Shikamaru, Choji and Sakura following close behind.

**TIME SKIP**

"They're nearby." Akamaru barked and looked back at Kiba. Shikamaru felt uncomfortable, but continued on with their mission. Without warning, they moved off towards their target.

* * *

"Wait, what was that?" Mizuke froze, sensing that someone was near. Kasumi and Hidan felt it too. Four shinobi darted out of the trees on both sides of the road. Kasumi's eyes widened in shock.

"Shikamaru-sensei!" Shikamaru stopped in surprise too. His eyes moved over to Hidan and anger rose inside of him. Hidan reached for his scythe, thinking of the many ways to finish off this brat.

"Our fight takes place somewhere else." Shikamaru sprinted off back into the forest, making sure Hidan was following him. Of course, he was. Shikamaru had no plan at the moment, only a slight idea of what might happen.

"Shikamaru! Wait up!" Sakura caught up to him, and he knew she wasn't going to go away.

"Just stay back. This is my fight."


	9. Revealed

Both Hidan and Shikamaru were tired, not making any progress in the fight. Neither of them had a scratch, but were scuffed up pretty badly. Sakura just stood back, watching them.

"Heh, thought you would've died in that hole. Not even an immortal could survive down there, but you did." They both just stared at each other, evenly matched.

"The only reason I haven't gone fucking insane was that I wanted to finish the fight from thirteen years ago."

"I must ask, why is Kasumi with you? Thought she would come back to the leaf village."

"**Stop talking so I can slice your head off!**" Hidan darted forward but Shikamaru dodged the attack and they both stopped to catch their breath.

"Should've guessed that she would be with you, after all, she would trust you the most."

"What the fuck do you mean?!"

"You don't know?" Shikamaru laughed. "Do you remember Tsume?" Hidan remembered her, and thought about where she was. "Well, thirteen years ago, after all you Akatsuki disappeared, she came up to Sakura one night and gave her something, then she left. No one knows where she is. What is important is what she left with Sakura." Hidan's mind clicked.

"Wait..."

"Now you get why she looks so much alike someone, and why it bothered me for a long time? It's because she's your daughter." Hidan just stood there, shocked and trying to organize things in his head. '_No. Fucking. Way..._'

"Kasumi!" Mizuke looked back at Kasumi, only to see her fall to the ground with blood staining the side of her head. She ran over to her and looked at the wound. "I need to take you somewhere safe." While picking Kasumi up, she glared back at the arguing leaf shinobi.

"Idiot!" Kiba whacked Choji upside the head. "I told you to knock her out, not kill her! We needed to bring her back to the village _alive_!"

"Sorry! But... uh... to point this out, they're gone." Kiba looked up and saw that Mizuke and Kasumi were now gone.

"Shit!"

"The cut is not that deep..." Mizuke mumbled to herself while she cleaned up the blood off of Kasumi's head. Mizuke sat back after she was done, then looked around. They stopped somewhere in the forest, so she could heal Kasumi. '_Where did Hidan go?_' Mizuke sensed movement and looked over to see an object in the distance moving closer. '_There he is._'

"You alright, Hidan?" When he stopped, all he did was stare off into space.

"Huh?" Hidan shook his head, his mind gathering itself again until he spotted Kasumi. He looked down at the ground and leaned back against a tree, sliding down until he was sitting. Hidan sighed and closed his eyes, trying to sort out what happened earlier. '_Why me...?_'

A man sat next to a river, splashing water onto his face. His short, blonde hair was a mess, but he didn't seem to bother about it. He stood up and started to make his way towards the nearest town, his bright blue eyes scanning the forest as he walked. When he reached the town, he scanned the people until his eyes met a hooded person. '_That must be her. I've heard about someone like her around the place, and this must be her._' The man walked up to the hooded person and placed his hand on their shoulder.

"Huh?" The person turned around, who was a silver haired woman. Her eyes widened when she saw the blonde man.

"Deidara..."


	10. Old Friends

Kasumi cringed at the sudden pain in her head, then slowly opened her eyes, thankful for the shadow of the tree above her. She slowly sat up, careful not to move too fast or her head would twinge in pain again.

"Good, you're awake!" Kasumi looked over to see Mizuke, who didn't seem to be hurt at all. Kasumi glanced around the area and spotted Hidan, strangely silent and sitting alone. He was looking down at the ground, ignoring the fact that Kasumi was awake.

"Your head okay? You got hit pretty hard."

"Yeah... What's with him?" Kasumi pointed towards Hidan, but Mizuki just shrugged.

"He's been silent like that ever since he's been here. Must be a lot on his mind. We should get going now." Mizuke stood up, helping Kasumi up too. Mizuke sniffed at the air. "Well, actually, I think I might see if there is a dango shop nearby. Sure smells like one is close." Mizuke walked out of the area, in search of where the smell is coming from. Kasumi drew her attention immediately to Hidan, who seemed to relax now that Mizuke was gone.

"Uh... Hidan, are you alright-"

"How long have you known?" Hidan spoke unexpectedly, Kasumi wondering what he ment.

"I asked how long have you known?"

"Uh... what do you mean...?"

"I mean the relation between us. How long have you known?" Kasumi froze.

"Uh..." Hidan sighed and leaned back. He looked over at Kasumi.

"Take a seat." Hidan motioned to the spot next to him. Kasumi didn't move as she was uncertain, but went ahead and sat next to him. All Hidan did was look at her.

"Uh... Hidan..."

"You know, you do look a lot like your mother." Hidan grinned, while Kasumi just sat there, slight shock on her face. Hidan stood up, and looked around the place. Just then, Mizuke came back, a small bag in her hand.

"Anyone?" Mizuke held ou the bag and Hidan took it. "I already ate mine." After he pulled out his food, he handed the bag to Kasumi. They stayed for a few minutes, eating, then left.

"So how far is this place?" Kasumi looked at her surroundings as she walked by.

"Oh, not far. About another thirty minutes walk."

"Ah. And what are we going to do there?"

"Well, my father sent me out to dig up Hidan for a reason. Probably for a client of his. We gain money that way to support our home and such. This client must be rich because my father seemed for me to want to hurry."

"Rich, huh." Hidan sighed and zoned out for a bit, wondering who would want him to be dug up. Then it dawned on him.

"**Fuck!** That damn miser! Why the fuck would he want me back?! He can go fuck himself for all that I fucking care..." Hidan mumbled under his breath, cursing every so often. Bothe Mizuke and Kasumi ignored him. I wasn't long before they reached a small town.

"It's nice to be home..." Mizuke led them to the edge of the town, where they stopped near a small house. "Wait here." Mizuke walked inside.

"Father? I'm home. I finished the job." Mizuke saw her father come out from the hallway, seeing a grin find its way onto his face.

"It's nice to see that you're okay, Mizuke." They hugged and Mizuke's father walked over to grab a bag.

"Uh, where is the client?" Mizuke looked around.

"Other side of town. Come on." They both walked out and met up with Hidan and Kasumi. "Who's this?" Her father was looking at Kaumi.

"Oh, we met along the way back. Kasumi helped me out at times."

"Alright then." All four of them started to walk towards the other side of town, each of them looking at the buildings and people. Before Hidan and Kasumi knew it, they were on the other side of town and a man stood, leaning against a tree. Hidan crossed his arms and growled in anger, looking away. Down by the man's feet was a silver case, in which he kicked over to Mizuke's father.

"Alright Hidan. Come on." Hidan growled and followed the man, Kasumi following behind in uncertainty. The man looked back and spotted Kasumi, who froze when she looked at his face. His eyes had no pupils and were green, while the white part of his eyes were a brownish-red. He also had stitches running from the corners of his mouth to the back of his jaw.

"Who are you?" Kasumi was frozen stiff when the man glared at her. He was intimidating, very intimidating.

"Uh... Kasumi...-"

"**Just leave her alone Kakuzu!** I don't mind if she follows along." The man glared at Hidan.

"But I do. Why is she following us?"

"**It's none of your business, so fuck off!**" Kakuzu and Hidan held their glares at each other for a few seconds and then continued walking, ignoring the fact that Kasumi was still following them.

"What happened to your hair!?" The silver haired woman gazed at Deidara in shock, his hair reaching the bottom of his jaw.

"I cut it because I don't want to be recognized that easily. The leaf village is still out there, and they could recognize me in an instant."

"How did you find me?"

"I heard talk about a silver haired woman traveling from place to place. I thought it was most likely you, Tsume."


	11. Brought Back

"Follow me, yeah." Deidara motioned for Tsume to follow him, but she just stood there.

"Where are we going?" Tsume held a blank stare to the blonde. Deidara sighed.

"A place to stop for the night, yeah." Tsume shrugged and continued with him, while he rolled his eyes.

"Wait, I need to do something first, hmm." Deidara pulled out a bit of clay and molded a bird. He then pulled out a piece of paper and scribbled something on it. After he tied it to the bird's leg, he let it fly, watching it until it flew out of sight.

"What did it say?"

"Don't worry about it. You'll find out later, hmm." They continued walking until they met the forest. "Let's see... uh... right, yeah." Deidara pointed and started to walk right, ignoring the sun setting.

"Deidara, where are we going?!"

"I said don't worry about it, and come on, yeah!"

* * *

Kasumi looked up into the sky, noticing that the sun was setting.

"Uh... where will we stay for the night? Guys?" Both of them seemed to ignore her, heading towards the mountains in the distance. '_Damn. Looks like we'll just keep on walking._' Kasumi glanced up at the sky again, only to notice a single bird in the distance. She became distracted by it, and noticed that it was heading towards them. Kakuzu noticed the bird too and looked up, holding out his hand for the bird. It landed on his hand, and was holding a message in its beak. The bird was white, seeming to be almost clay-like.

"What does it fucking say?" Hidan looked closely at the bird and frowned. "Great. Blondie is still alive. What the fuck does he want?" Kakuzu scribbled something on the paper and handed it back to the bird, which then took off, heading back the way it came.

"He's close to the hideout. We'll meet him there."

"What fucking hideout? It was fucking destroyed. Kasumi saw the rubble of what was fucking left of it."

"We've been hiding in a new one in the mountain range in front of us. No one except us knows where it is."

"Meh... great. Just fucking great."

"He also said he found her." Hidan froze, seeming to understand what Kakuzu meant. Hidan chose to stay silent for a bit and continued to walk. Kasumi had no idea what he was talking about, and she just let it go for now.

The moon shone brightly onto the forest, illuminating Tsume's and Deidara's hair as they reached the edge of a mountain cliff. Deidara looked around and started to look for something.

"Deidara, what are you looking for-"

"Aha! Here we go, yeah." He reached inside of a crack in the cliff's wall, then pulled something out. It was a small, oddly shaped, stone. He pulled out a kunai and scraped his finger on it, then wiped the blood off onto the stone. Strangely, the stone seemed to absorb the blood and glow a faint red in the moonlight. Deidara placed the stone back into the crack and a hole, big enough for someone to walk through, appeared in the cliff's wall. Tsume jumped when it opened.

"Come on. It's just the new hideout, yeah. A few others are still alive too, hmm."

"But how..."

"Don't worry, yeah. You'll be able to open the door too, hmm." Tsume cautiously followed him through the small tunnel, until they met a steel door. Deidara knocked on it a few times and a voice answered on the other side.

"Who is it?"

"Kisame, it's me, yeah. Deidara, hmm."

"Did you find her?"

"Yes, she's right next to me, yeah." The door opened and Tsume met a familiar blue skinned, shark-like man. She looked up at Kisame as she walked by, him looking down as he was about seven inches taller than her.

"Nice to see you again, Tsume." He grinned. "Deidara, go and rest. I'll help her from here." Deidara sighed in relief and disappeared somewhere. Tsume looked around, and spotted eleven doors on the walls, surrounding the giant room. In the middle was a few couches and a TV, and a open doorway led into the kitchen.

"I see you guys tried to make it look like the old hideout."

"Yeah, we tried, and it's pretty close. We already set up a room for you." Kisame pointed towards the second door from the left. "The rooms are in the same order as they were before, just to tell you. From the left, it's Hidan's, Yours, Kakuzu's, Sasori's, Deidara's, Tobi's, Mine, Itachi's, Zetsu's, Konan's, and Leader's. The bathrooms are over there, and over there." Kisame pointed towards two doors. One was in between Kakuzu's and Sasori's rooms, and the other was between Itachi's and Zetsu's doors.

"You do know that everyone might not still be alive."

"Yeah, but this is just to be safe." Tsume shrugged and headed towards her room, then stopped and glanced at Hidan's room.

"Who else is still alive that you know of at this moment?" Kisame thought for a second.

"Well, there's me, Deidara, and Konan here, and also you, but Kakuzu hasn't came back from the mission he went on yet. He was sent to get Hidan." Kisame remembered something from a while back. "Tsume. You miss him, don't you?" Tsume thought for a moment, and felt tears start to fall from her eyes.

"Please don't talk to me about that." Tsume went into her room, her voice wavering when she spoke. Kisame shrugged and headed towards his room, yawning. He looked up at the clock before he entered his room. It was almost eleven at night.

"They should get here soon. If not, then I'm going to have to find them."


	12. After 13 years

"What the fuck is this?!" Hidan stared at a stone cliff, the edge about a mile above him. Kakuzu was looking around until he reached inside a crack in the wall. Kasumi was zoned out, thinking, until the wall in front of her opened and she jumped.

"Follow me." Kakuzu went in first, Hidan and Kasumi following him down the stone hallway. It was nearly pitch black, worse than it was outside when the moon was full and at least shown some light. Right now, it was around midnight, as Kasumi felt asleep on her feet. At least she wasn't complaining. They met a giant steel door, and Kakuzu rapped his knuckles on it a few times. It was about a few minutes until someone answered.

"Eh... who's there?"

"Kakuzu."

"Right. Come on in." The door opened and Kasumi was surprised to see a tall, light blue skinned man holding the door open. He looked down at Kasumi in curiosity.

"Meh... let me fucking guess. My room is the fucking last one. Correct?"

"Yes." Kisame looked at Kasumi. "Now, who are you?" Kasumi froze, not knowing what to say.

"Uh..."

"Kasumi might be brave while she fights, but when talking to complete strangers that fucking tower over her, she acts like a fucking mouse. She's been tagging along with me for a bit." Hidan shrugged and entered his room. Kakuzu already disappeared, and that left Kasumi and Kisame in the room.

"My name is Kisame. Nice for you to join." He held out his hand and Kasumi carefully took it. "You look like Hidan. Do you two have any relation between another or what? Just asking, and if you don't want to answer, you don't have to."

"Uh... I'd rather not say..."

"Oh. We have a few spare rooms for now, so you can take Tobi's room. It's the one over there." Kisame pointed to the sixth door from the right, and Kasumi headed towards it.

"Thanks!" Kasumi nodded towards Kisame before she closed the door, then immediately flopped onto the bed, falling into a deep sleep.

* * *

"Ah, fuck." Hidan awoke and looked over at the clock. It was only two in the morning. He yawned and sat up, thinking about what to do now. His hair was messed up from sleeping, but he didn't care. He then stood up and walked out of his room, then headed towards the kitchen, trying to stay silent so no one else would wake up. Looking around, he spotted the fridge, not noticing that a door closed out in the main room.

'_Who the hell is up at this hour, other than me?_' Tsume looked over at the kitchen, seeing that the light was on in there. She looked around, and saw that Hidan's door was open. She froze, then slowly made her way to the kitchen. When she reached the section where the main room and the kitchen met, she stopped and took a deep breath. The door to the fridge was open and someone was sifting through the food inside.

"Hidan..." He jumped, hearing his name and rose up, only to hit his head on the top edge of the fridge.

"Ah! Fuck!" The pain ebbed away a few seconds later and he looked over at who spoke, then froze. Tsume stared at him, slight tears forming at her eyes, then ran forward to him, hugging him tightly and resting her head right next to his neck. Hidan didn't react when she first latched onto him, but then wrapped his arms around her after the slight shock wore off. He could feel the tears from Tsume crying, and slid his fingers across her jawline to her chin, lifting her face from his neck.

"Stop. You're too beautiful to cry." Hidan grinned, then leaned forward, pulling Tsume into a kiss. He felt her wrap her arms around his neck, deepening the kiss. After a few seconds, they broke apart, and hidan placed his hand on Tsume's cheek, brushing away her silver hair.

"I'll see you in the morning." He placed a kiss on her cheek and walked off to his room, leaving Tsume to think. Slowly, she strode back to her room, closing the door softly behind her. She laid down onto her bed, but didn't fall asleep. All she did was think for a bit, letting her mind wander. After a while, she smiled and closed her eyes, letting sleep take over her.


	13. Kasumi

I am sooo sorry for not posting, but at school we have been taking pre-STAAR tests and after spring break, we will be taking 3rd nine weeks benchmarks, then after THAT we will be taking the STAAR tests. So much to do, not enough time. I will type whatever chance I get, and it may be closer to the summer when I might be able to post. Sorry for the wait! Both stories, Treefall and this one, will be postponed until further notice. Again, sorry!

There were three raps on the door, and Tsume did not take kindly to being woken up early in the morning.

"Nrrg... Who is it...?" She winced at the bright light when the door was cracked open.

"It's morning." Hidan opened the door a bit wider, being careful not to let in too much light.

"Hidan... why so early...?" Tsume groaned and slowly sat up, shielding her eyes from the light.

"It's actually getting close to lunch. Be happy we decided to let you sleep in this long." Hidan left the door open and walked away, leaving Tsume to get up. '_Holy shit! I was that tired?!_' She stretched, sighing as she relaxed. She looked down, noticing she slept in the clothing she wore the day before, then shrugged, walking out of her room. The first thing she noticed was that Hidan was nowhere to be found.

"If you're wondering, Hidan and Kakuzu went out to spar. Hopefully they won't kill each other." Tsume looked over to see Konan and grinned.

"Nice to see that you're alive and well. Anyone else found?"

"Just you, me, Hidan, Kakuzu, Kisame, and Deidara. Kisame told me someone else was dragged along with Hidan and will be staying with us. Right now she is taking Tobi's room." Konan sighed. "I'm just wondering about the others, not being sure they're still alive or what."

"Yeah... Do you mind if I go say hi to the newcomer?"

"Nope, go right on ahead." Tsume strode over to the door where the newcomer was staying, then cracked it open a bit. No one was in the bed, nor anywhere else in the room.

"Uh, Konan...? She's not here."

"Really? She must have woken up earlier than me then. Check if she might be watching Hidan and Kakuzu spar. They're not that far from here."

"Okay, thanks." Tsume hurried out the front door, then stopped at the end of the dark hall. As soon as she stopped, the wall in front of her opened as if to sense her presence. She glanced back after she walked out into the sunlight, the opening gone and a solid cliff wall in its place, then continued to walk forward. It wasn't long before she could her the sounds of fighting.

"Hey! Idiots! Who's dead?!" Tsume looked around the clearing, spotting both Hidan and Kakuzu littered with scratches, staring at each other and panting heavily. She didn't seem to notice Kasumi in the trees watching both of the Akatsuki fight. Kasumi looked down at who spoke, not a clue of knowing who it was.

"Hello there! Who are you?" She smiled down from the tree. Hidan's gaze flipped back and forth between Tsume and Kasumi, holding his breath. '_Oh shit, Oh shit, Oh shitshitshit..._'

"I'm Tsume. You must be the one that was dragged along with Hidan. What is your name?" Kasumi froze when Tsume told her name. '_Tsume..._'

"Uh-"

"Alright, how about we exchange hellos somewhere else?" Hidan dragged both of them out into the forest, leaving Kakuzu alone to wonder what the hell is going on.

"What the hell is going on, Hidan?" Tsume glared at Hidan, not at all happy about being dragged away for no apparent reason.

"Ah, well-"

"You're Tsume..." Kasumi stared at Tsume, her mind racing with questions. Tsume stared back at her, then took in a sharp breath when she realized who Kasumi was. She then slowly walked forward and clutched Kasumi in a hug.

"Kasumi..."

srry for the shortness. I couldnt think of anything else to put and will save it for the next chapter.


End file.
